Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s address at the inauguration of Five DRDO Young Scientists’ Labs in Karnataka
The Chief Minister of Karnataka Mr. Yeddyurappa ji, Chairman of DRDO Dr. G. Satish Reddy, other top officials of DRDO, Members of Apex Committees, Lab Directors of Young Scientists!
Friends,
First of all - a very Happy New Year to all of you! Happy New Year! Coincidentally, a short while back I was at a farmers' programme in Tumkur; and now I am here amidst all the young friends of the country who are associated with research! And tomorrow I have to attend the Science Congress. In a way, my Karnataka visit and that too my first visit in 2020 is dedicated to the spirit of 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan and Jai Anusandhan' and to the spirit of New India. And it is also a matter of great pride for all of us that this event is being held at the Aeronautical Development Establishment with which the most revered Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, was associated in DRDO.
Friends,
This decade is as important as New India; because with 2020 a new decade has started and not just a new year. And what will be India's strength in the coming years? This decade is also going to decide what will be our position in the world? This decade is entirely of young dreams and our young innovators, especially the ones who were either born in the 21st century or attained adolescence in the 21st century. When I urged DRDO to rethink and reshape itself, the idea behind it was that one must work with new energy to meet the challenges of the 21st century. However, it does not mean that the person who turned 36 has become useless. That means, if we seek the support of those less than 35 years of age for the ones who have worked hard for 60 years, 50 years, 55 years, then the world will be able to see a New India. Without the strength of these old experienced people, it is not possible for the new young people to rise. And so it is very important to have a combination. And I also have a personal experience behind this idea. I have come very late in political life and initially I used to look after my party's organization and look after elections etc. So when I started in Gujarat, I was entrusted with the responsibility of the first major election. I was quite new, and at that time newspapers had written these things in great detail. At that time about 90 people worked in my office, in my management. The entire election was fought across the state but the office management had around 90 people. And those who had come as Volunteers were to work for 2-3 months. The newspapers had found out that the average age of this entire team of 90 people was 23. That means I was in that average age group of 23 years and had organized and contested elections. And we were victorious for the first time.
The young people have a lot of restricting capacity. For instance, suppose you are a very good kabaddi player, and you have played kabaddi for 20 years in your life. You have played at National, and International levels. No matter how good you were then but after attaining the age of 60-70 years if you go and watch a kabaddi match you will feel scared looking at a young kabaddi player and think he might be hurt. You have played kabaddi all your life and have faced everything, yet when you see any 18-20 year old man with swift and fast movement you are afraid that he might be injured. You had done the same thing yourself but are not able to see that now. This psychology works. There is a difference between a young mind and an experienced mind. And so how can we combine the use of both the minds in DRDO to accept the challenges of the world? Sometimes a small plant is not able to grow under a very big tree. The fault is not of the big tree. The plant too feels that it should remain so in front of the big tree. Nobody is to blame. But if the same plant is left in the open, then the big tree will also be proud to see it grow along with it. That's why we have started these five labs for this same purpose. And I want them to make mistakes. Let these five Labs exhaust the entire budget. When a scientist sacrifices his life completely, then the country gains something. The funds do not matter before your life and sacrifice. And why will the government step back in investing the money?
I am glad that the suggestion of setting up 5 Labs in the field of Advanced Technologies was seriously worked out and today 5 such institutes are coming up in Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Mumbai. And I believe that these Young Scientists’ Labs will give new wings to the thoughts and ideas of young scientists. It means that now it will be recognized as ‘DRDO-Y’ but while speaking, it will sound as ‘DRDO-Why’ and I believe that these five labs have the power to respond to DRDO-why. And we all have to strengthen it together. The results from these labs will determine the intensity of our national effort for Advanced Technologies. These labs will help in shaping the nature of research and development in the field of emerging technologies in the country.
And yes, my young scientists! I would like to tell these young friends that these labs will not test only technology. Some times we think that the technology has advanced two steps or five steps. It is not about only technology. It is also going to test my young scientists’ temperament and patience and this is the greatest parameter.
You must always keep in mind that it is only with your efforts and constant practice that India will lead the way to success. Only positivity or purpose should be your source of inspiration. You always have to keep this in mind that the responsibilities of making the lives of 130 crore Indians safe and easy are on your shoulders.
Friends,
Today's event is just the beginning. It's not just one year but an entire decade that lies before you. What should be the medium and long term roadmap for DRDO in this decade should be considered very seriously. And I want to give you one more suggestion. These five labs will have people with the age group of 35 years and below but what will happen when this team turns 36? I want to assure the people that these 5 labs will be allowed to turn 45 or 55 and so on. But you have to create five new labs with people of the same age of up to 35 years. You do not have to maintain the age of 35, let this lab turn 40, 45 etc but we will have five new labs with people up to 35 years. When they cross 35, then we will come up with 5 new labs and this chain will continue. If this chain does not continue, then the 32 year old man here will be scared as to what will happen to him after 3 years? His dream will fall apart. Therefore, leave the responsibility of these labs to them till they retire. Let these people turn fifty, fifty five, and sixty. Make 5 new labs with fresh under-35 people. And this chain should go on. Then you will see that a new atmosphere of freshness will constantly be created. And this will ultimately benefit us. And we should not stop just at that idea. The programme should also start at the actionable point within the stipulated time.
I want to see DRDO at a height where it determines not only the direction and condition of scientific institutions of India, but also that of the world. And I am saying with a great conviction that DRDO and our young labs can also become a source of inspiration for the world and other major institutions. There is a solid reason why I am saying this, and the reason is the history of DRDO, the performance of DRDO and the trust of country on DRDO.
Friends,
Today the country's finest scientific minds are in DRDO. The achievements of DRDO are endless. The exhibition I have just seen showcased not only your current achievements but also your future plans and projects. And the youngsters explained in such a simple language that even I could understand. I felt like I could do that too. Otherwise, in school I could not understand anything. Today you have explained well. You have made India's missile programme among the most outstanding programmes of the world. And the previous year has given a new direction to India's strength in the field of space and air defence. Successful testing of state-of-the-art space technology in the form of ASAT will certainly define the capability of 21st century India.
Due to your efforts, today India is one of the very few countries that have the capability to manufacture everything from aircrafts to aircraft carriers. But is that enough? No, friends! And you must have seen that at home, a child who does good work is pestered by the parents to do more. If he does five things, then parents would ask him to do seven. If he does seven things, then parents would ask him to do ten. On the other hand, if someone does nothing, then everyone would say- hey, leave him… he will not do that. So the problem is that people will keep giving you work.
See, Ramcharitmanas has a great saying. Ramcharitmanas states-
कवन जो काम कठिन जग माहीं।
जो नहिं होइ तात तुम्ह पाहीं।।
That means, what is that work on this earth, which you cannot do? You can do everything, nothing is difficult for you. Like when Ramcharitmanas was created, did anyone know that DRDO would come into existence sometime in the future? I would like to repeat the same for DRDO. Your abilities are limitless and you can do so much! Expand the scope, change the parameters of your performance, open your wings to the full potential and show your courage to rule the sky. You have the opportunity and I am with you.
As the Prime Minister of the country, I am standing in front of you and saying that India is ready to walk shoulder to shoulder with you, the scientists and the innovators of the country. You are all well aware of the fact that in the future, besides Air and Sea, Cyber and Space will also decide the strategic dynamics of the world. In addition, intelligent machines are capable of playing an important role in defence security mechanisms in the future. In such a situation, India cannot be left behind by anyone. Investment in future technology is necessary and innovation is also necessary to protect its citizens, its borders and its interests.
I am sure that you will leave no stone unturned to fulfil the requirements and aspirations of New India, and I would also say that your expansion should not be limited to India only. An institution like DRDO can give a lot to humanity in the world. You can play a crucial role towards world security. Today, there are several countries of the world which are not at risk of attacks at the borders. There are all friendly countries in the neighbourhood. Even these countries, which had never thought that they would have to lift a gun because there was never a threat of war in the neighbourhood are now being hit by terrorism. The borders were safe, quiet, open and full of love, but those countries have also been hit by terrorism. They too had to pick up guns.
DRDO can also contribute to upgrading the internal security in such countries. The needs of the people that I meet from the small countries have increased so much. Apart from the limited resources, they will have to think something new for dealing with these threats. We can guarantee the safety of such people by holding their hands. This will be a humanitarian work. And every such thing you do will be of great service to humanity and will also strengthen India's role on the world arena.
Friends,
In the field of defence manufacturing, DRDO will have to come up with new innovations to make India self-reliant. DRDO's innovations play a huge role in strengthening Make in India and promoting a vibrant Defence Sector in the country. And therefore, we should constantly try to ensure that we are completely self-reliant from design to development. We have to develop an ecosystem where there is a total focus on integration and innovation.
Friends,
Today India is moving rapidly towards new reforms in the field of defence. Conditions are changing rapidly in the world and Technology continues to dominate the scenario. In such a situation, India cannot rely only on old systems. We cannot face the 2st century with the 19th century systems. Just this week, the Chief of Defence Staff has also been appointed by the government. This CDS is going to bring a sweeping change. He is directly related to DRDO. The need for such an arrangement was felt years ago for a better coordination, connection and synergy among the three forces in India. This post was a commitment of our government to the country, which we have fulfilled.
Friends,
We have to constantly strengthen ourselves in tune with this phase of change. This is the expectation of the country from us and this is the vision behind the establishment of Young Scientists’ Labs. Today, we will not only deal with future Technological challenges, but will also infuse new energy into the work culture of DRDO. With this expectation, once again, my best wishes to you all!
Happy New Year to you and your family once again!
Thanks a lot!